Williams, Shehata and Martion Combine for 67 Points as Men's Basketball Beats Central Arizona

The Pima Community College men's basketball team (16-12, 11-9 in ACCAC) used its strength and speed to wear down Central Arizona College (14-13, 9-11) on Wednesday.

The Aztecs defeated the Vaqueros 95-88 taking a step closer to securing a Region I, Division II playoff spot for the third straight year. They came into the game at the No. 3 spot and just two and a half games behind South Mountain Community College for the No. 2 seed.

Up 87-82 with 53.2 seconds left, the Aztecs sealed the game with a 6-0 run with a basket by freshman Kwintin Williams, two free throws by sophomore Yusuf Shehata (Amphitheater HS) and a dunk by sophomore Ezini Ugbisien (Palo Verde HS) to make it 93-82.

The Aztecs went on a couple of runs in the second half to put pressure on the Vaqueros. Up 47-41 early in the second half, the Aztecs went on an 11-2 run to make it 58-43. Later, with the score at 64-51, Central Arizona went on a 10-0 run to cut it to a three-point advantage for the Aztecs. Pima countered with a 10-0 run of their own to make it 74-61 with under eight minutes to go.

The Aztecs held a slim lead for most of the first half but fell behind 31-30 with six minutes left. They went on a 12-2 run in a little over five minutes to take a 42-33 lead. Pima was up 45-38 at halftime.

The Aztecs had three players score over 20 points. Williams had a double-double of 24 points and 15 rebounds while Shehata finished with 22 points on 6 for 10 shooting. He also had five assists. Fellow sophomore Justice Martion had 21 points and three steals. Freshman Keven Biggs had 11 points.

The Aztecs avenged their 70-62 loss at Central Arizona College last month.

The Aztecs play their final regular season home game on Saturday against South Mountain Community College at 4:00 p.m. The four sophomores will be recognized at halftime.

Yusuf Shehata/Photo by Ben Carbajal